TIRANA, Nov. 30, 2022 – One of the oldest known Albanian forms of women’s dresses, Xhubleta, has been included in UNESCO’s “intangible cultural heritage” list.
The list includes the skills and culture associated with items getting global renown and includes 600 other items, joining things like French baguette and traditional tea making in China — both also included for the first time in 2022.
The list, officially known as the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding, included the Albanian Xhubleta because of its history and because it requires great skill to succeed at cutting and sewing the strips to achieve flared undulating profile at the back.
Experts say the dress is unique to Albanian women and is not seen in other parts of the Balkans. It comes in different colors for married and unmarried women and is used by highlander women in Northern Albania and Kosovo.
The dress fell out of favor during communism and very few women have current know-how to produce the dress from scratch, which puts it at risk.
